magazine - Insinööritoimisto Comatec Oy

Comatec Group, Customer Magazine 1/2013
news
Circulating fluidized bed boilers
are the future
Major delivery from Foster Wheeler to
South Korea
Machine for installing bentonite
buffer blocks for Posiva
World record for assembling
Volkswagen beetle engine
Presenting the business line
vice presidents
Presenting Ari-Pekka Liedes
From researcher and product
developer to quality manager
Comatec news
news
Table of Contents
Editorial
...................................................
Circulating fluidized bed boilers
are the future
– major delivery from Foster Wheeler
to South Korea
...................................................
Supercritical water
– Foster Wheeler is at the forefront in developing
supercri cal CFB boilers
..................................................
World record for assembling
Volkswagen beetle engine
..................................................
Machine for installing bentonite
buffer blocks for Posiva
.................................................
Presenting the business line vice
presidents
................................................
Presenting Ari-Pekka Liedes
.................................................
From researcher and product
developer to quality manager
.................................................
Comatec news
– Insinööritoimisto Comatec Oy acquires
APK-Ohjelmoin Oy
– Comatec Group strengthens its expert services
– Appointments: Ari-Pekka Liedes
.................................................
2 ComatecNews
Editorial
Year of rapid growth
for Comatec Group
F
or Comatec Group, 2012 was a year of
rapid expansion, as it grew 23 % from the
previous year. In the prevailing condi ons in
2012, this achievement can be considered very
sa sfactory. The number of personnel saw a net
increase of 75. Almost half of this growth came
from corporate acquisi ons, the remainder from
organic growth.
The volume of business also developed posi vely at
the Group. Net sales for the year rose to almost EUR 26
million. Direct exports increased to seven per cent of net
sales. The figures show that last year went virtually to
plan, although the result failed to match expecta ons in all
respects.
The Group has offices in three new loca ons. In 2012 the
Group opened offices in Järvenpää and Oulu and in 2013 it
set up an office in Hyvinkää.
Growth in the order books of our clients slowed down,
and new orders were clearly smaller in size as the end
of the year approached. Extreme cau on about star ng
new investments is a dis nc ve feature of 2013. Because
of this, the Group is not expec ng significant growth
this year. It would seem that simpler engineering design
is increasingly following in the steps of produc on and
moving away from Finland. One reason for this is the price
of Finnish work in rela on to produc vity.
It is strange that Finland’s compe ve edge is being
weakened by increasing the amount of paid leave, not only
through the framework pay agreement but also through
actual legisla on in parliament. In prac ce, workers in very
many sectors have as much as three months of paid leave
a year, regulated by legisla on and collec ve bargaining
agreements. The work from which companies obtain their
net sales and pay wages and salaries for the whole year is
done in the remainder of the working year (nine months).
This is not a sustainable trend and will lead to problems.
In its recent budget framework nego a ons, the
Government took some correct decisions on taxa on,
and some of these will ease employment. They will be
implemented at the earliest in one year’s me, and will
not start to have a visible impact un l then. However,
the benefits for employment may easily be erased in the
nego a ons for collec ve bargaining agreements star ng
in the autumn. Time will tell if it is possible in Finland
to reach agreement on ma ers that will safeguard our
wellbeing or if they are wiped out even before they get
underway.
Publisher
EdiƟng and implementaƟon
Comatec Group, Kalevan e 7 C,
FI-33100 Tampere,
tel. +358 29 000 2000
www.comatec.fi
Comatec Group
Taina Syrjänen, tel. +358 40 5931 259,
[email protected]
Cover: Foster Wheeler Energia Oy
Group, Samcheok
Aulis Asikainen
Comatec Group CEO
Feedback, subscripƟons,
cancellaƟons
Taina Syrjänen, tel. +358 40 5931 259,
[email protected]
Heikki Harri
Taina Syrjänen
ComatecNews 3
Circulating fluidized bed boilers are the future
– major delivery from Foster Wheeler to South Korea
Foster Wheeler Finland is currently delivering a new boiler system
based on CFB (circula ng fluidized bed) technology to KOSPO,
Korean Southern Power Co., Ltd. CFB plants are in themselves
well-established technology but Foster Wheeler has developed
the process by using the latest supercri cal once-through
technology in the boilers. These supercri cal CFB boilers are
designed at the Foster Wheeler Energia Oy research centre in
Varkaus. The delivery in progress is the third. The two previous
supercri cal CFBs were supplied to Poland and Russia. In the
new plant for Korea, as in dozens of earlier power plant projects,
Foster Wheeler has worked in close partnership with Rantotek Oy,
part of Comatec Group.
good progress in the design and in
implemen ng the whole project,”
says Jarmo Puumalainen, Director,
Discipline Engineering at Foster
Wheeler.
TEXT: HEIKKI HARRI
Eco-friendliness is the
sum of many factors
The first phase in the power plant
project in Samcheok on the Korean
east coast comprises four CFB boilers,
each of which will generate 550 MW
of electricity. This makes these the
largest boilers of this type in the
world. The fuel will be mainly coal,
but 5 % of the total power can be
produced with biofuel.
The first phase of the Samcheok plant
is planned to be ready for commercial
produc on towards the end of 2015.
4 ComatecNews
KOSPO, the end client, has the op on
of building another unit of the same
size beside this one, which would
raise the total output to 4400 MWe.
Wind, solar and wave power plants
are also being built on the site, so
with good reason this can be called a
green power plant.
”The project got underway with our
client Hyundai in May 2011. The plant
is being commissioned in 2015, so
we can say that we have made very
”The new CFB technology we have
developed is based on high steam
pressure and a low combus on
temperature, which results in high
system efficiency, low emissions and
low service costs. Overall, this plant
is considerably more efficient and ecofriendly than conven onal plants, ”
stresses Puumalainen.
“One advantage of modern CFB
technology is that it can use many
other fuels in addi on to coal, such
as biofuels, agrofuels, and recycling
and refuse derived fuel, while
keeping emissions at a low level.
Foster Wheeler CFB boilers can make
flexible use of parallel combus on.
The Samcheok power plant uses coal
and five per cent biofuel, so biofuel
will generate altogether 110 MW of
electricity, which is much more than
many small biofuel power plants,”
explains Jarmo Puumalainen.
“The new technology is considerably
more eco-friendly. One factor in
this, in addi on to the flexibility
with fuels, is the supercri cal oncethrough technology, which gives
the plant higher system efficiency
than a conven onal boiler plant.
Injec ng limestone into the boiler
binds sulphur dioxide, and the lower
combus on temperature keeps
nitrogen oxides at a low level. In an
ideal situa on, a large power boiler
plant like this can in prac ce be made
emission-free by building a carbon
dioxide recovery plant beside it and
using the latest flue gas scrubbing
technology,” stresses Puumalainen.
“Having a reference like this is of
course extremely important for
us. Since our goal is to further
develop the technologies used
with the boilers for even bigger
plants, ge ng a new phase in the
technology into produc on is always
a great achievement,” states Jarmo
Puumalainen.
subcontractors in manufacturing,”
explains Puumalainen.
Rantotek has designed boilers
since 1992, first with A. Ahlström
Corpora on, and then with Foster
Wheeler a er it took over Ahlström in
1995. The partnership has developed
and grown, for over a period of some
20 years Rantotek has assisted Foster
Wheeler in designing more than 50
CFB boilers. The partners have also
together designed 50 other boilers.
“The large scale of the Samcheok
plant also resulted in a certain
amount of unforeseen work, since
a surprisingly large number of li le
details came to light during the
project. What was most important for
Foster Wheeler, however, was that
working with Rantotek we were able
to show the client that we had the
situa on under control all the me,”
states Juhani Burke, Project Manager
at Foster Wheeler.
“From many years’ experience of
working with them, I can say that
Rantotek is a reliable and competent
partner. The quality of the design
comes to light most clearly at the
manufacturing workshops, and the
workshop in Poland has been very
sa sfied with the quality of Rantotek’s
design work. It is easy to produce the
structural parts when working with
high quality plans.”
Many parts and components are
needed, for each boiler weighs 40005000 tonnes and contains more than
600 kilometres of piping. The boiler
is 85 metres high, which in itself
is a further demonstra on of the
benefits of the new CFB technology.
con nued on next page
(le to right) Jarmo Puumalainen and Juhani
Burke from Foster Wheeler and Ilpo Haikonen
from Rantotek.
Jarmo Puumalainen has reason to be
proud of the exper se of the Varkaus
office.
“All Foster Wheeler CFB boilers are
designed at the Varkaus research
centre, and the same team is of
course also responsible for developing
this latest CFB technology and
designing the plant. Finland and
Varkaus are deservedly held in high
esteem throughout the whole Group,”
he says.
Close partnership with
Rantotek
“The Samcheok major power plant
project naturally also provides plenty
of employment. In addi on to the
normal design work, for this power
plant in Korea we also had to make
provisions for earthquakes, so there
was more work than normally. All
in all, the work by engineers and
other experts amounted to 250
man-years, and on top of this comes
the manufacturing of the boilers
at our engineering workshops in
Poland and China. We also use some
ComatecNews 5
A conven onal pulverized coal tower
boiler with a corresponding output
would easily be half as high again.
Ilpo Haikonen, Director of Project
management at Rantotek, is also very
happy with the partnership.
“We were partly involved in this
project already in the tender phase,
which simplified our work later. Our
specialist exper se in this project
included the strength calcula ons for
the boiler structures, and modelling,
design and dimensioning of pressure
vessels using ASME standards. The
order also included strength analysis
and design of high pressure piping
and the design of complex duc ng
structures. More than half of the staff
at our offices was involved in the
project,” states Haikonen.
Foster Wheeler – leading supplier
Foster Wheeler is a company with global opera ons that has its head office
in Switzerland. Foster Wheeler Energia Oy Group comprises Foster Wheeler
Energia Oy in Finland and its subsidiaries Foster Wheeler Energi Ab in
Sweden and Foster Wheeler Energie GmbH in Germany.
The head office of Foster Wheeler Energia Oy is located in Espoo. Most of
the personnel, about 400 people, work in Varkaus, where the company’s
engineering, R & D and produc on opera ons are located. This is where
Foster Wheeler has its cu ng edge energy sector knowhow, strong project
exper se and skilled personnel.
Foster Wheeler Energia Oy Group is part of the global Foster Wheeler AG
Group. Foster Wheeler AG employs some 12,000 energy and technology
sector professionals in its Global Engineering & Construc on Group and
Global Power Group.
With 40 per cent of the market, Foster Wheeler is the world’s leading CFB
boiler supplier and developer of supercri cal CFB technology.
SupercriƟcal water
Pressure bar
Supercri cal
water
Cri cal point
221
solid
liquid
gas
1
0,006
steam
0,01
100
374
Temperature C
SupercriƟcal water
– Foster Wheeler is at the forefront in developing supercriƟcal CFB boilers
The three best known states of ma er
are solid, liquid and gas. However,
there is a fourth, the supercri cal
state. Supercri cal steam, or strictly
speaking supercri cal water, refers to
water at a pressure and temperature
above its cri cal point. At its cri cal
point water has a pressure of 22.1
MPa and a temperature of 374 °C.
Supercri cal water is not normal
steam or fluid water, but has
proper es that are closer to those of
gas. It does not liquefy or solidify.
Supercri cal water is a rac ve for
energy produc on since it has a much
higher specific heat capacity than
steam in its sub-cri cal state. The
6 ComatecNews
power plant process then achieves
a higher opera ng efficiency. When
a steam power plant operates in the
supercri cal area, it can generate the
same amount of power with less fuel
than a normal steam power plant, so
the emissions from the plant are also
lower.
The use and design of power plant
boilers opera ng in a supercri cal
state is challenging, especially
concerning the choice of materials,
because of the high pressures and
temperatures they operate in. This
has led to the use of ever higher
temperature tolerant and more highly
alloyed steels as the materials for
power plant pressure vessels.
The basic technology for supercri cal
CFB boilers was developed specifically
at Foster Wheeler in Finland, where
development of CFB boilers has
gone on for almost 40 years. In
2009 Foster Wheeler supplied the
first circula ng fluidized bed boiler
opera ng with supercri cal steam
parameters in the world to the Lagisza
460 MWe power plant in Poland. The
Novocherkasskaya OTU boiler project
in Russia has a power output of 330
Mwe. The plant is physically of a
similar size to Lagisza but uses poorer
quality coal. Rantotek has been Foster
Wheeler’s partner in both projects.
World record for assembling
Volkswagen beetle engine
A three-man team built a
VW T-1 engine from basic
components to start up in
world record me last summer
at the “Bug In Finn” annual gettogether held by the Finnish
Volkswagen Associa on. The
team comprised main mechanic
Pe eri Valtonen with Henry
Forsgren and Jani Miikkulainen,
who works for Comatec and
is now on assignment from
the Järvenpää office at Metso
Paper.
The me was taken for assembling the
engine from start to finish, resul ng
in a new world record of 1 hour, 52
minutes and 4 seconds.
Three experienced mechanics
used only hand tools to assemble
the engine, working in a restricted
area outdoors. Assembling the
engine presented its own par cular
difficul es, since the engine was built
from separate parts such as bearings,
piston rods, screws, pistons, cylinders,
hoists and camsha . Only the rockers,
cylinder head valves and springs were
ready assembled, in the same way as
they are available in a store. Certain
problems came to light as the team
was working, and assembling the
engine did not go quite as smoothly
as was planned. So there is s ll room
for improvement in the record me.
“Next summer we’re planning to
improve the me. We’ll prepare
be er for the assembly and mark the
parts more precisely. We’ll also book a
bigger area. We might even assemble
two engines on the same day,” says
Jani.
Volkswagens have been Jani’s hobby
since he was 18, when he bought
his first replica Corve e built on a
Volkswagen chassis and fi ed with
VW technology. Since then he has
built for himself, his sister and even
his friends, cars and machines with a
common factor of Volkswagen.
“I started actually building engines
around 2004, when some friends and
I decide to take up endurance racing
as a hobby. That involves driving
round a track for six hours without
a break. That is extremely hard on
an air-cooled engine in the heat of
summer,” states Jani.
“That is when I really started to build
engines. I built my first turbocharged
engine with programmed fuel
injec on. The turbocharger was a
mechanical belt-driven turbocharger
from the new Mini Cooper. These
turbocharged engines have been my
main hobby recently and programmed
turbochargers in par cular. I have
built these myself and installed them
in cars in place of the accelerator,”
says Jani
“I agreed to help out on the world
record a empt a er Pe eri asked me
last summer.”
Assembly team: le , main mechanic Pe eri Valtonen.
Right, assistants Henry Forsgren and Jani Miikkulainen.
ComatecNews 7
Machine for installing bentonite
buffer blocks for Posiva
Final disposal of the spent nuclear fuel from the nuclear power plants owned by Teollisuuden Voima and
Fortum will be in copper canisters placed at a depth of some 400 metres in the bedrock at Olkiluoto.
Posiva Oy is responsible for research into the final disposal of spent nuclear fuel and for the prac cal
implementa on. The tests rela ng to final disposal are carried out at ONKALO, the underground rock
characterisa on facility at the nuclear waste final disposal plant. Comatec Group has designed a prototype
for installing the bentonite buffer blocks. It is planned to start tes ng the machine this year. Final disposal
should start at the beginning of the 2020s and will con nue for almost 100 years.
TEXT: TAINA SYRJÄNEN
‘Teollisuuden Voima Oyj’ and ‘Fortum Power and Heat Oy’
are Finnish energy companies that own Posiva Oy, which is
responsible for research into and the actual implementa on
of the final disposal of the spent nuclear fuel of its owners.
The disposal of spent nuclear fuel must be organized in
such a way that it is not harmful to organic nature. Final
disposal of the spent nuclear fuel from the nuclear power
plants owned by Teollisuuden Voima and Fortum is in copper
canisters at a depth of four hundred metres in the bedrock at
Olkiluoto. The tests rela ng to final disposal are carried
out at ONKALO, the underground rock characterisa on
facility at the nuclear waste final disposal plant.
The key issue in the final disposal of spent nuclear
fuel is the long-term safety of the solu on, meaning
the safety of the repository a er the final disposal
plant has ceased its opera ons and the facili es in the
bedrock have been closed. Long-term research is being
conducted to examine the suitability of the condi ons
in the bedrock for final disposal and assess how they
affect safety. R & D aims to ensure that the canisters,
the bentonite and the back-fill material will last for the
required period of me.
Long-term safety is based on the mul -barrier approach.
The radioac ve ma er is placed within several barriers
to release that together make each other more effec ve
but are as far as possible independent of each other, so
that if one barrier fails it will not put the effec veness
of isola on at risk. These barriers are the ceramic state
of the fuel, the copper/cast iron canister, the bentonite
buffer, the tunnel back-fill and the surrounding bedrock.
The spent nuclear fuel is packed into the final disposal
canisters at an encapsula on plant. A er packaging the
canisters are transported by li to the underground
repository. The canisters are placed into holes in which
bentonite blocks have been installed.
The bentonite buffer blocks are therefore one part of
the barriers. Bentonite clay is sensi ve and reacts to
moisture. This sets its own challenges for handling the
material. Altogether 10 blocks will be placed in one
final deposit hole. To achieve the target speed set in the
project, the blocks should be installed in one hole in two
hours. Extremely high precision is required for installing
the blocks, to the millimetre, to make it possible to
place the canister in the hole. The betonite blocks have
a diameter of 1.65 metres, the highest block has a
height of 96 cm, and the heaviest weighs four tonnes.
8 ComatecNews
Posiva plans to test the installa on of the betonite
blocks in the holes in the repository during 2013.
Comatec Group is designing the prototype of a special
installa on machine for the tests that
will be made in Finland. This will be
the first of its kind in the world.
The prototype machine for installing
buffer blocks will be 7.7 metres long,
3.7 metres high and 2.6 metres wide,
and it will weigh some 20 tonnes.
“Comatec’s product development
project began in spring 2011 with the
concept design. Closely connected
with the concept design for the
machine was logis cs planning, where
we developed various methods for
bringing the bentonite blocks to
the installa on machine,” says Ari
Haanperä, who was in charge of the
project at Comatec.
“When we started designing, we
knew what the installa on machine
had to achieve and the technical
requirements for this. These formed
the basis for the design.
“The first step was logis cs planning,
in other words deciding on the most
effec ve concept for bringing the
bentonite blocks to where they would
be installed. Bentonite’s sensi vity to
moisture was a major factor here,”
says Haanperä.
“Detailed design of the prototype
began once we had decided on one
concept out of the several op ons
available, and we then started
to implement this. Simplicity of
structure, reliability and installa on
safety have been of primary
importance in the design of
the prototype. The machine
is remote controlled
and contains no
hydraulics. We’re
using electrical
equipment instead
of hydraulics,
and during the
project we also
examined other
ways to perform the
required movements,”
states Haanperä.
Designing the prototype
has been one of
Comatec’s largest
product development
projects, and it is currently being
built at the workshop of Konepaja
Laaksonen in Turku.
“Altogether some 30 experts at
Comatec have taken part in the
design project. We have needed all
areas of Comatec’s exper se in the
design, such as mechanics, hydraulics,
electrics and automa on, as well as
expert services including strength
calcula on and product safety design.
Just to men on a few of our areas of
exper se,” says Haanperä.
“We’re finishing off the
documenta on and reports at the
moment and we s ll need to test the
machine and the concept,” he adds.
Designing the prototype for installing
the buffer blocks is part of the
LUCOEX project financed by the
EU, in which Posiva is working with
other interna onal organisa ons
responsible for final disposal. The
other organisa ons are SKB in
Sweden, Andra in France and Nagra in
Switzerland. The LUCOEX project is a
four year project that began in 2011
and should finish in 2014. Posiva’s
goal in the project is to develop
equipment for final disposal.
“Each country is developing its
own final disposal concept, but we
exchange informa on and insights.
At the same me we cooperate in
studying and developing installa on
solu ons,” says Keijo Haapala,
development engineer at Posiva.
“In the EU project the installa on
of buffer blocks is divided into three
parts: installing the buffer blocks,
quality assurance for this, and
handling any problems.
“Working underground it is easy
to forget that there are very
high precision requirements for
installa on,” stresses Haapala.
“Developing a completely new
machine is extremely challenging.
It is hard to foresee everything that
needs to be taken into account,” says
Haapala.
“Coopera on with Comatec has gone
very well. For example we decided
on a completely new solu on, using
a special transport container for
transpor ng the bentonite buffer
blocks to where they will be installed,”
explains Haapala.
The LUCOEX project is a public project
and informa on about progress in
the project is made freely available.
The LUCOEX project has its own
website: www.lucoex.eu. Posiva
also communicates openly about
its ac vi es on its website at www.
posiva.fi.
The prototype is 7.7 metres long, 3.7 metres
high and 2.6 metres wide, and weighs 20
tonnes.
ComatecNews 9
Presenting the business line vice presidents
– Petri Leino, Marko Pennanen ja Jouni Tuononen
At the beginning of 2013 Comatec Group carried out a major restructuring of its organisa on. The
changes aimed at enhancing customer-oriented development, developing competences, smoother
control of resources, more profitable growth and faster interna onal expansion. One of the more visible
changes is the new business line structure, which is based on areas of competence. The business lines
are mobile machinery and special vehicles, industrial produc on systems, and boilers and power plants.
Petri Leino, Marko Pennanen and Jouni Tuononen head up the business lines.
TEXT: TAINA SYRJÄNEN
Mobile Machinery and Special
Vehicles
“In the Mobile Machinery and Special
Vehicles business line we develop
machines that move on wheels and
caterpillar tracks, and special vehicles
such as trains and vehicles for the
defence industry. The dis nc ve
feature of the machinery is that it is
mobile, in most cases moving with its
own source of power,” says Petri Leino.
“The Mobile Machinery and Special
Vehicles business line has been
growing strongly since the second
half of the 1990s. Sales have
performed well, series produc on
runs have increased in size, and the
level of technology in the products
has increased through product
development. At the same me we
have made advances in the networking
business model and our clients are
outsourcing a considerable part of
their product development and design
ac vi es.
“Comatec has been ac vely involved
in expanding the cluster right from the
start, and has obtained a strong market
posi on by constantly developing and
expanding its knowhow and service
offering. We are, for example, working
with our client in the FIMA1 research
consor um to develop the technology
of the future,” says Petri.
“Our strengths lie in our indepth
knowhow in the business line and
our broad service offering, so that
we are able to develop the complete
product, from concept through to
commissioning. A good example of this
10 ComatecNews
is the project for Posiva reported in this
magazine to build machinery used in
the final disposal of nuclear waste.”
Industrial ProducƟon Systems
sector than the other business lines,
but we may have more indepth
technology knowhow due to our
specialisa on,” states Jouni Tuononen,
Managing Director of Rantotek.
The Industrial Produc on Systems
business line headed up by Marko
Pennanen offers and supplies a wide
range of different expert design and
project services rela ng to industrial
produc on machinery and systems.
It operates in four business sectors:
material handling, electromechanical
systems and components, processing
machinery and industrial maintenance.
“This comes out very clearly in our
role in Foster Wheeler’s power plant
delivery in Korea.
“My own role is to strengthen and
support coopera on between key
personnel in the business line in
looking a er sales and customer
projects, and I make sure that we
are developing sales and customer
rela ons systema cally and
effec vely,” explains Marko Pennanen.
“Rantotek is involved in boiler plant
projects from the decision to build
through to commissioning. The total
project consists of many parts, so we
take advantage of our competence
in process planning, hea ng and
thermal insula on analysis, strength
analysis and dimensioning, equipment
and plant design, and conformity
assessment documenta on,” says
Jouni.
“Everything is based on having the
right people in the right places, that
they know what they have to do, and
that everyone is using effec ve tools
and clear business models. The new
organisa on has already helped clarify
sales management, but we will be
pu ng even more efforts into this.”
Boilers and Power Plants
Rantotek Oy, part of Comatec Group,
forms the Boiler and Power Plant
business line. Rantotek is an energy
sector expert with special competence
in steam boiler plants, pressure vessels
and high-pressure pipes for these, and
other vessels.
“We operate in a somewhat narrower
“Our EPCM (Engineering, Procurement
and Construc on Management)
project knowhow is our special
competence in boiler plant projects.
We are strong in this area,” states
Jouni.
Long-lasƟng, confidenƟal
customer relaƟonships
All the heads of business lines
emphasize that long-term customer
rela onships with leading companies
in their fields form the cornerstone
for business and make it possible to
generate the highest added value.
“One of the most important strengths
in my business line is long-term
customer rela onships based on
trust. These have enabled us to
acquire a high level of product and
technology knowhow, in some cases
over a period of several decades. I
1
FIMA=Forum for Intelligent Machines
would like par cularly to highlight
our competence in technology for
bulk material conveyors and other
bulk material processing equipment,
and also our indepth knowhow in
electromechanical equipment and
automa on,” says Marko.
“A good example of a long-term
customer rela onship is Outotec, with
whom coopera on got underway
back in the 1980s and has con nued
uninterrupted ever since.
“When we know our clients and
their business models, products and
personnel, we can concentrate on
carrying out the job itself effec vely,”
adds Petri.
Jouni Tuononen also has experience of
long-term customer rela onships. The
situa on and condi ons can change.
Jouni has experience of both sides, as
buyer and supplier.
“I worked in engineering and
management posi ons at Foster
Wheeler Energia for 25 years, and
during that me I purchased services
from Rantotek. Now I am offering
them our services. I know the buyers
and sellers on both sides and have
experience of both viewpoints. Our
coopera on with Foster Wheeler is
easy since we know each other so
well,” states Jouni.
“Flexible coopera on between our
business units and our offices in
different loca ons also helps us start
up jobs for our customers quickly if
needed,” adds Marko.
Need to invest in knowhow and
personnel wellbeing
“We cannot create and maintain
long-term confiden al customer
rela onships without a high level
of knowhow. We put much effort
into nurturing and increasing our
intellectual capital, since only through
this can we create new business
and added value, which customers,
personnel and Comatec as an
employer all benefit from,” stresses
Marko.
“The recession in 2009 was a turning
point, and we can no longer take
con nuous growth for granted. We
need knowhow of an even higher
level if we are to develop compe ve,
low cost products for our clients,”
comments Petri.
(le to right) The heads of business lines:
Jouni Tuononen, Petri Leino ja Marko Pennanen.
“Developing the skills of our personnel
and their wellbeing is an important
part of my work, for I am chairman of
the Group’s competence development
work group,” states Marko.
“The Group’s management team
pays careful a en on to personnel
wellbeing, with regular monitoring
and a proac ve approach. We hold
personnel sa sfac on surveys at
regular intervals, and in general try to
respond to feedback and personnel
ini a ves as needs arise.”
The heads of business lines are agreed
that, despite these efforts, the best
basis for personnel wellbeing is a
healthy work situa on. Without a
suitable work load, no other factor
contribu ng to wellbeing will create
sa sfied personnel.
“We work with clients and personnel
every day to build this founda on
stone for wellbeing. And we’ve
succeeded quite well, since during one
year the number of people working
at Comatec Group has risen from less
than 350 to about 400,” says Marko.
ComatecNews 11
Presenting Ari-Pekka Liedes
Ari-Pekka Liedes, M.Sc. (Tech.),
became office manager of
Comatec Group’s Hyvinkää
office when APK-Ohjelmoin
Oy, an engineering office
specialising in industrial
automa on, joined Comatec
Group on 13 February 2013.
TEXT: TAINA SYRJÄNEN
Ari-Pekka Liedes has worked as
an automa on engineer at APKOhjelmoin Oy and been one of the
two owners of the company since
1995. In February 2013 he gave up his
holding in the company and took on
the posi on of head of the Hyvinkää
office in Comatec Group.
APK-Ohjelmoin Oy is an engineering
office focusing on programming for
industrial automa on, so it fits in very
well with Comatec Group’s design and
commissioning services for industrial
automa on so ware.
“APK-Ohjelmoin ’s services include
the design and commissioning of
industrial automa on so ware and
user training. We are flexible and are
happy to supply small deliveries of
part of a system as well as extensive
full systems,” explains Ari-Pekka
Liedes.
“Customer needs dictate the scope of
deliveries.”
12 ComatecNews
Ari-Pekka’s strong points are his longterm experience, both in the sector
and in running a business, which he
obtained in his role as shareholder in
the business.
have stayed with us all the me
since we started working with them.
We wish to con nue to manage our
customer rela ons and services in the
same way,” states Ari-Pekka.
“I hope I can make use in my new job
of my strong experience in both areas,
in engineering and the business side.
It will be interes ng to look at this
sector now from the viewpoint of a
slightly larger company,” says AriPekka.
Ari-Pekka, who comes from Lohtaja
in Central Ostrabothnia, and his wife
Teija have lived for three years in the
village of Vähikkälä in Janakkala.
“My first challenge is likely to be
adjus ng to my new role. It will
certainly be a challenge finding new,
good employees,” he adds.
“I only started in this job in February,
but judging from my short experience
here it doesn’t look to be an
overwhelming challenge.
“APK-Ohjelmoin ’s customer base
has mainly comprised large expor ng
industrial companies. We can be
sa sfied that many of our customers
“Teija and I moved into a small house
that is more than 100 years old from
Hyvinkää, where we lived for about 20
years. Both our children have already
flown the nest,” says Ari-Pekka.
“Teija and I spend an excep onal
amount of me together, since she
also works at APK-Ohjelmoin and is
carrying on at Comatec Group. In the
summer we will celebrate 30 years of
marriage.”
From researcher and product
developer to quality manager
TEXT: TAINA SYRJÄNEN
Anne Lipponen took up her posi on of quality manager on 1 January 2013. Anne’s appointment as
quality manager at that me is part of the reorganisa on carried out at Comatec Group. As the result
of its strong development and growth, Comatec has realized that it also needs cer fica on for its
quality management system. And obtaining this cer fica on for Comatec Group is Anne’s goal.
Anne joined Comatec in January 2012, when Insinööritoimisto Comatec
and Insinööritoimisto Keijo Kärki Oy agreed on a merger. Anne started
working at Kärki in 2005, when she was in charge of customer trial
runs for Metso Paper Oy and in product development. Anne started in
product development projects at Metso Paper 10 years ago. Before that
she was a researcher in the chemistry department of the University of
Jyväskylä and at the Helsinki University of Technology.
“I am responsible for maintaining and upda ng Comatec’s quality
management system and for training in quality. I am also involved in
developing project opera ons and in the ini a ve commi ee. A current
project is upda ng the quality instruc ons, which have changed in part
because of the reorganisa on,” says Anne Lipponen.
“Our goal is to cer fy the quality management system to the ISO
9001:2008 standard, which will enable us to demonstrate the company’s
ability to supply products that consistently meet customer requirements
and the requirements concerning a product imposed by legisla on and
the authori es.
“Audi ng is an integral part of quality management. We shall be carrying
out audits for individual projects and for each process. Audits are a good
opportunity to give comments on how prac cal instruc ons are and on
any changes that are needed. This makes the instruc ons more prac cal
and relevant to the work.
“Many years’ experience working in a variety of jobs in the mechanical
engineering industry and in extensive joint projects have given insight
into the different phases of processes and have prepared her for
working in a broad field,” says Anne.
“Working in a research and development environment has given me an
analy c approach to ma ers, and this is useful in my present job.
“I enjoy working at Comatec very much. With my job as quality manager
I have gained a broader view of Comatec’s knowhow. I have found the
working atmosphere to be good here. Training and guidance in new
areas have been readily available.
“The working atmosphere at Comatec is very open. It’s easy to get
answers to ques ons and I have found it easy to relate to people,” Anne
con nues.
Anne lives with her family in Sibelius country in Järvenpää. Her one-anda-half and three year-old sons make sure that she is kept busy at home
as well. Her family also includes a husband and a golden retriever.
“I spend my free me doing things with my lively li le boys and
exercising the dog. Living in a detached house also means there’s plenty
to do, and I’m looking forward to when the snow melts and I can start
doing things in the garden again.”
ComatecNews 13
Comatec news
Insinööritoimisto Comatec Oy acquires APK-OhjelmoinƟ Oy
Comatec Group parent company
Insinööritoimisto Comatec Oy
purchased the en re share stock
of APK-Ohjelmoin Oy from the
founders of the company on 13
February 2013. The acquisi on
supports the development of
Comatec Group’s exper se in li ing
and moving equipment for use in
design and commissioning services
for industrial automa on so ware,
since APK-Ohjelmoin has focused on
industrial automa on programming.
It has specialized in the design of
programmable logic so ware and
of control rooms and complex
measurement and tes ng systems.
Its personnel have built up their
Le to right: Ari-Pekka Liedes, Aulis
Asikainen and Kari Maaranen
14 ComatecNews
exper se in interna onal projects
in different parts of the world. The
company has extensive experience in
carrying out projects, everything from
ini al design to maintenance.
APK-Ohjelmoin Oy’s areas of
competence are PLC programming,
user interface design, PC
programming and measurement
and tes ng systems. The company’s
services include the design and
commissioning of industrial
automa on so ware and user training
in this. The scope of its deliveries is
flexible, just a small part of a system
or extensive, complete systems,
depending on the customer’s needs.
APK-Ohjelmoin Oy was established
in 1995 by Ari-Pekka Liedes and Kari
Maaranen. It has operated since it
was founded in Hyvinkää. Ari-Pekka
Liedes con nues at Comatec Group as
office manager at the Hyvinkää office.
For further informa on about the
acquisi on and both par es in the
transac on, contact Ari-Pekka Liedes
(+358 (0)40 556 3299) or Comatec
Group President and CEO Aulis
Asikainen (+358 (0)400 504 021).
Comatec news
Comatec Group strengthens its
expert services
LINK design and development Oy has
sold its Technical Analyses business to
Insinööritoimisto Comatec Oy on 12
February 2013, when the companies
signed the sale contract. LINK design
con nues its opera ons as an expert
in user-oriented products and
services.
“The sale of this business is part
of LINK’s process of clarifying and
renewing its strategy. We will
con nue to operate as experts in
user-oriented products and services,
offering our clients management,
innova on, user experience, design
and planning services,” states Jaakko
Anƫla, President and CEO of LINK
design.
“Expanding our technical analysis
services supports our rapidly growing
exper se-based solu ons business.
Through this acquisi on we can offer
a wider range of knowhow to the
customers who have transferred to
Appointments:
us through the transac on, and it
also strengthens our local services in
the Helsinki metropolitan area,” says
ArƩu LaiƟnen, business unit manager
for Comatec’s expert services.
“Comatec Group’s expert services
make it possible to apply a variety
of problem solving methods in the
project development projects of our
clients,” says Ar u Lai nen.
“Our expert services combine our
engineering knowhow in different
fields into a package that gives our
clients a cost-effec ve total solu on
for developing a product throughout
its en re life cycle,” Lai nen sums up.
For ques ons concerning the
purchase of the Technical Analyses
business, contact Ar u Lai nen
(+358 (0)40 578 9936), business unit
manager, expert services at Comatec
Group.
Ari-Pekka Liedes, M.Sc.
(Tech.)
started on 13 February 2013 as
office manager of the Hyvinkää
office of APK-Ohjelmoin Oy, part
of Comatec Group.
ComatecNews 15
Comatec Group
TAMPERE
Insinööritoimisto Comatec Oy
Kalevan e 7 C, FI-33100 TAMPERE
Tel. +358 29 000 2000
Rantotek Oy
Kalevan e 7 C, FI-33100 TAMPERE
Tel. +358 29 000 2090
VANTAA
Myyrmäen e 2B (5. krs), FI-01600 VANTAA
Tel. +358 29 000 2020
JÄRVENPÄÄ
Sibeliuksenkatu 18, FI-04400 JÄRVENPÄÄ
Tel. +358 400 675 778
HYVINKÄÄ
APK-OhjelmoinƟ Oy
Kehäkuja 6, P.O. Box 26, FI-05831 HYVINKÄÄ
Tel. +358 40 5563 299
LAHTI
Askonkatu 10, FI-15100 LAHTI
Tel. +358 29 000 2030
TURKU
Hiidenkatu 7, FI-20360 TURKU
Tel. +358 29 000 2040
HÄMEENLINNA
Teknologiakeskus Innopark,
Terminaali e 10, FI-13430 HÄMEENLINNA
Tel. +358 29 000 2050
Brain Power for
Engineering
Mechanical, electrical and
automaƟon design and project
management represent Comatec
core competences. Our soluƟons are
used in mobile machinery and special
vehicles, in industrial producƟon systems,
and in boilers and power plants.
JOENSUU
Hiiskosken e 9, FI-80100 JOENSUU
Tel. +358 29 000 2060
KUOPIO
Microkatu 1, FI-70210 KUOPIO
Tel. +358 44 7414 440
IMATRA
Insinööritoimisto Metso Oy
Vuoksenniskan e 97, FI-55800 IMATRA
Tel. +358 29 000 2070
LAPPEENRANTA
Insinööritoimisto Metso Oy
Kauppakatu 61, FI-53100 LAPPEENRANTA
Tel. +358 29 000 2070
VARKAUS
Rantotek Oy
Wredenkatu 2, FI-78250 VARKAUS
Tel. +358 29 000 2090
OULU
Oucons Oy
Kaarna e 14, FI-90530 OULU
Tel. +358 400 542 547
TALLINNA
Comatec Estonia OÜ
Laki 16, 10621 TALLINN, ESTONIA
Tel. +372 5685 0845
SOLUTIONS. PROJECTS. EXPERTS.
www.comatec.fi
www.comatec.fi
BRAIN POWER FOR ENGINEERING
APK-OHJELMOINTI OY
COMATEC GROUP
www.apk-ohjelmointi.fi